Lamb Of God’s Randy Blythe: The 10 Songs That Changed My Life
A life like Lamb Of God vocalist Randy Blythe’s deserves a suitably raucous soundtrack. And even in death, he’s not planning on going out quietly…
The first song I remember hearing…
Lipps, Inc – Funkytown (1979)
“It was probably something from church like Amazing Grace, but as far as more contemporary, recorded songs go, I’m a child of the ‘70s and there was a lot of disco back then. I remember hearing Funkytown, which was everywhere at the time. It was when terrestrial radio ruled and you couldn’t download a bazillion songs at once. You were stuck with whatever was on the radio. I grew up in a rural area, so it wasn’t exactly a hotbed of underground music.”
The first song I ever fell in love with…
KISS – I Was Made For Loving You (1979)
“When I was growing up, the most edgy thing that I liked was this KISS song. The theatrics dragged me in like pretty much every other kid with any sense in the ‘70s, and for a couple of years on every Halloween I painted my face like Gene Simmons. Ironically, many years later Gene Simmons was being played some Lamb Of God music for an article a lot like this one. He said, ‘They sound very talented, but the singer sucks! What is this terrible singing?’ I thought that was pretty freakin’ funny.”
The song that made me want to be in a band…
Corrosion Of Conformity – Hungry Child (1985)
“I got into bands by accident. I liked music, but I had no desire to actually be in a band myself. One time though, I was about 14 and an older dude was driving a bunch of us to go skating in Wilmington, North Carolina and he was playing Corrosion Of Conformity. This song came on and I was singing along with it. He said, ‘Damn, you can really do that. You ought to be in a band, kid.’”
The song that got me into the most trouble…
The Cult – Born To Be Wild (1987)
“I was in a horrible car wreck when I was in high school. I wasn’t driving, but the driver was listening to The Cult’s cover of Born To Be Wild and they ran into a ditch. My buddy’s date was up front and her head hit the windshield. She had a lump on her head, but it could have been a lot worse. I wasn’t even supposed to be out, so that got me into a goodly amount of trouble. It was not a good night.”
The song that reminds me of love…
Depeche Mode – Stripped (1986)
“It could be any song off Depeche Mode’s Black Celebration really, because my first girlfriend loved that LP. She listened to The Cure’s Head On The Door album a lot too, but I’ve since disassociated that one with the relationship. That Depeche Mode record is still very much linked to her. As an aside, if you want heartache-laced, ex-girlfriend songs, I recommend you try anything by the Descendents.”
The song I can’t listen to any more…
Led Zeppelin – Stairway To Heaven (1971)
“There are so many overplayed records in the world, but the big one is Stairway To Heaven. I absolutely love Led Zeppelin, but I cannot listen to Stairway ever again. It’s fucking brutal how played-to-death it is. Don’t get me wrong, it’s an epic song with a great solo, but I don’t want to nor do I need to hear it any more.”
The first song I moshed to…
Bad Brains – Sailin' On (1982)
“It’s a tall order to pick one song – that’s ridiculously specific. I saw a lot of punk bands at an early age and I was definitely slam-dancing and flipping off stages to all of them. It was probably during Bad Brains in the ’80s, because I remember destroying stuff to them. They’re still my favourite band. But dude, I’m nearly 50 and it’s all a bit of a blur (laughs).”
The song that picks me up when I’m down…
Bad Brains – Attitude (1982)
“This is kind of self-explanatory: ‘Don’t care what they may say, we got that attitude / Don’t care what they may do, we got that attitude / Hey, we got the PMA.’ They were all about that positive mental attitude and an absolute refusal to let the world grind them down. I’ve actually had a rough couple of days, so I’m going to go listen to that now.”
The song I’m most proud of…
Lamb Of God – King Me (2012)
“The song is about waking up and living life on life’s own terms. I recorded that not long after I got sober, and it was a pivotal, transitional time in my life. So it means a lot to me.”
The song I’d like played at my funeral…
The Jesus Lizard – 7 Vs. 8 (1980)
“I have my funeral planned. It’s going to be a weeklong affair and really offensive. I hope people will remember me as a fucking asshole (laughs), so I’m trying to figure out how to offend everyone I know once I’m dead, but this festival of awfulness won’t be happening any time soon.”
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